Friday, August 19, 2011

Back to School - Ugh or Yippee!

Well, it is that time of year again when most of us send our precious babies back to school...or should I say back to the great unknown! I have chatted with a few friends recently and they are so happy to "get them out of the house". Many parents find summers very hectic and fun but also frustrating sometimes. With the kids home they simply do not get a lot of things done that maybe they were planning to do. Sometimes the unscheduled chaos can send even the most calm and collected mom into "orbit." If you have more than one child you can probably identify with that. They all want to do something different and they all want you to do it with them! Either that or they are bickering with each other, picking on each other, whining, or making a complete mess of your freshly cleaned house. Ahhh the joys of motherhood!

Are you looking forward to school starting again? Just waiting for those free mornings to sip coffee on the patio, catch up with friends, read that book you have been meaning to, or take a leisurely shopping trip? Or are you in the other camp of dread and worry because school has started? Do you jump every time the phone rings thinking it is the school nurse calling to summon you because your child is bleeding? Does fear grip you until your child arrives home and you know everything is alright? Do you worry that your child will not understand what is being taught, get bad grades, be rejected by friends, be teased, harassed, or worst of all injured by some bully? These are very real things that we face as moms. Even moms of children without bleeding disorders have many worries. But we have the added stress of the "what if they are bleeding", "what if I can't get there right away", "who will help my child", and the list of "what ifs" goes on and on.

Many parents of children with bleeding disorders have a "school plan" in place to help aleviate some of these worries. The principal, the teacher, classroom aids, the school nurse (if there is one), and the playground aids need to be made aware of your child's situation. Emergency numbers need to be provided so they can contact you, your doctor, or your Hemotologist should the need arise. Your Hemotologist would be a great resource for you to employ in putting together a plan that is right for you and for your child's school. You definately want the plan to be simple and something that the school will actually be able to carry out at the moment the need arises.

Maybe you have a plan or a protocol in place that is working well for you. If you don't mind sharing, I would love to hear about it! There may be others that can benefit from your well thought out school plan. Or, maybe you have some great ideas or thoughts to share about how you deal with the stress of sending your child back to school...I know I can always use advise on how to lower my stress level! Thanks for sharing!

2 comments:

Great information and tips in your post!!!! I have a 5th grader with Hemophilia A and is considered severe. One tip I would love to share is utilizing your HTC to the fullest. I am incredibly fortunate here in SC to have a great HTC and a Hemophilia Nurse that is fabulous. My son has been enrolled in 2 different schools during his "tenure" at elementary school. The Hemophilia nurse started preparing our local public school prior to my son entering kindergarden. In the spring prior to his enrollment we had a meeting set up with the school nurse, principal, guidance councelor a grade level teacher and myself. We determined what would be best for my son prior to him entering school and she brought along as much information that she thought they could handle at once to give them a Hemophilia 101 crash course and brought plenty of supporting material for teachers, the school nurse and administration to educate themselves. 2 weeks prior to school starting the Hemophilia Nurse came back to school to meet with my sons teacher, all grade level teachers and any faculty that might be on a emergancy responce team that would have questions. She was to the point and brief about what his condition was, what his limitations were and a HUGE stress that he was like every other child in the school. She has subsequently come every year to meet with his teachers, grade level and the school nurse.

I also made it very clear that no question or concern was too over cautious. They could call me at any time if they had any questions or were uncomfortable with somthing that occured that was in question. I always encourage them to call me when in any doubt no matter how trivial.

It has worked for us and I hope that this helps others. If you are not connected with your local HTC I strongly encouage you to tap into that resource.

I am a hemomom! My six year old has severe Hemophilia A. I have been using this amazing site since June. It's so easy to keep track of all bleeds, log infusions. It is totally safe and secure. No one can access your information.

Click on the link below and check it out...https://microhealth.org/pages/learn-more.html